Stephane Dion and the Liberal Party have offered up such a terrific example of what can happen when you don't do your homework, that I couldn't resist. Their widely publicized plan, The Green Shift, may well get its time in court as it flies in the face of trademark, copyright and intellectual property laws.
Green Shift, a company in Toronto, has been around for approximately 10 years. So even if they never trademarked the company name, there can't be any question that it belongs to them. Perhaps the most irritating part of the story is that the Liberals were aware of this company and went ahead anyway. There is something grossly arrogant about thinking you won't get caught.
For small business, it is key to do your homework about all aspects of marketing your business. If you are incorporating, you must do a name search but when you are a sole proprietor, you can get away without one. But to save face and potential court and rebranding costs, you better make sure no one else is using the name.
Imagine the embarassment when your new business customers are suddenly faced with a new business name; and even more so when the explanation is that you didn't do your homework. What does this do to your business' credibility?
Keep in mind that your customers do business with you because they have developed trust in you. If you have so little respect for your business that you don't do your homework, why should they have respect for it?
And doing your homework isn't limited to just your company name or slogan. It pertains to how you market yourself. Learn some of the basics of marketing law. And then, for goodness sake, abide by them. Just because you see big companies flying in the face of good marketing laws, doesn't mean it is the right answer for small business. They can afford (apparently) the fines and loss of face. Small business can't.
Learn what your competitors are doing and saying. Then stay away from those things. Not only do you eliminate the risk of a lawsuit regarding intellectual property or copyright, but you also have to spend some time thinking about how you are unique. This helps you stand out from your competition because you aren't using their words and actions.
Don't take the lazy way out. Have the same passion for your homework as you do for making sales.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
If you pay for it - get your money's worth
I have the utmost respect for my colleagues in the world of developing strong marketing strategies and tactics to help small business get the most for their money. I certainly have great respect for the talented graphic designers that take the concepts and strategies and bring them to life.
However, I have no respect for people masquerading as marketing experts or graphic designers when they have less experience and qualifications than my big toe.
I have lately come across a few small businesses that sell themselves as marketing support, graphic designers and copywriters. Their qualifications? They have taken a three-day pre-press course at the local college's continuing education section. They have purchased expensive software. They have a husband that is a salesman. They took English in high school.
I am not threatened by these "businesses" taking clients from my customer base. I am however completely incensed at how they damage the field of marketing and, even worse, take money out of small business' coffers without any hope of appropriate return on the investment.
I have mentioned before that cheap is often a signal of lack of quality (Cheap is a relative term so let me make it a little more clear. If you are paying your graphic designer $15/hour, there's a reason for it. If your marketing expert works for $15/hour, you are in trouble).
To make sure your decision to work with someone who says they are a marketer or graphic designer is the right decision, here are a couple of tips that can weed out the chaff:
However, I have no respect for people masquerading as marketing experts or graphic designers when they have less experience and qualifications than my big toe.
I have lately come across a few small businesses that sell themselves as marketing support, graphic designers and copywriters. Their qualifications? They have taken a three-day pre-press course at the local college's continuing education section. They have purchased expensive software. They have a husband that is a salesman. They took English in high school.
I am not threatened by these "businesses" taking clients from my customer base. I am however completely incensed at how they damage the field of marketing and, even worse, take money out of small business' coffers without any hope of appropriate return on the investment.
I have mentioned before that cheap is often a signal of lack of quality (Cheap is a relative term so let me make it a little more clear. If you are paying your graphic designer $15/hour, there's a reason for it. If your marketing expert works for $15/hour, you are in trouble).
To make sure your decision to work with someone who says they are a marketer or graphic designer is the right decision, here are a couple of tips that can weed out the chaff:
- Ask who else they work with. If possible, ask for references that include comments on the return on the investment.
- Ask to see some of their work. You will be able to tell if they are good or not. And don't just think "well, it's better than I could do". You are skilled at running your business, not at marketing or graphic design. (If you were skilled at marketing or graphic design, that is the business you would be running)
- Remember that you get what you pay for. If you only pay $30 for a graphic designer, but it gets you no results, then you just wasted $30.
- Review their marketing materials. If their own marketing materials are not professional, engaging and worth comments, then one of two things is happening. The first could be that they have no respect for their own business which means they won't have respect for yours. The second could be that they just don't have the talent or know-how to do a better job on their own materials. And if that is the case, run screaming from the building. If they can't make their own work sing, then they certainly can't make yours.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Listen to your customer - navel gazing part II
It's too easy to become self-absorbed as a business owner. And once you start spending time looking at your navel, you stop listening to your customers.
Case in point (once again) is Canadian Tire. Earlier I wrote about their perfectly dreadful website and now they have canceled production and delivery of their catalogue, which forces people to go to their perfectly dreadful website.
The Canadian Tire catalogue is an icon to Canadian baby boomers. It had an extended shelf life in bathrooms all over the country. And now, no doubt thanks to a hip and happenin' marketing team, this icon is no more. Was there an actual review of customer behaviour?
I can accept there is a cost savings on making this decision. Printing is costly. Distribution perhaps even more so. But hiding this motivation under the environmental wonderment of saving trees is almost pathetic.
For decades, Canadian Tire customers have used the catalogue to stream-line their purchase behaviours. They would browse the catalogue at their leisure (making them more susceptible to the marketing messages) and discover items to buy they didn't even know they wanted. And there is nothing leisurely or even intuitive about the Canadian Tire website. So kiss those add-on sales good-bye.
Why did Canadian Tire stop listening? First they ended the great TV commercials with the lovingly annoying Canadian Tire couple, now they are eliminating the catalogue. Both of which were strong representations of the brand. There was a hew and cry, even in Marketing Magazine, about the end of the TV campaign. That campaign had garnered enough recognition that it had reached the often unattainable heights of being mocked by comedians. And the death of the catalogue has been mourned in Canadian Workshop magazine (which no doubt is the biggest demographic of Canadian Tire shoppers).
So now that the rant is finished, how does this pertain to your business?
Listening to your customers and knowing when something is working for them is paramount to success. Just because you have become bored with your marketing tactics doesn't mean your audience isn't reacting to them. And there is no point in trying to become something other than what your customers want you to be. If Canadian Tire is trying to appeal to a younger audience with these changes, well they have lost their minds. Visit a Canadian Tire and see how many young people are there, other than their ill-trained, ill-informed part-time staff. So not only are young people not their audience but they are alienating their solid baby boomer audience. And good heavens, baby boomers have most of the disposable income in this country!
So the lesson here:
1. Talk to your customers. Find out what they like and don't like. And use that information as a guide.
2. Don't let your personal feelings about being bored with your campaign be the deciding factor in whether to continue.
3. Understand that mocking by comedians is the highest compliment to the strategy there is. Comedians won't mock something unless it has had enough audience hits they are guaranteed 90% of their audience will know what they are talking about. I spoke with some folks from AIG Assurance the other day. We talked about the mocking of their insurance for seniors - they actually track how many times they are mocked and they love it! Kudos to them.
4. Don't cancel a marketing program that is working. You may think that the hew and cry is valuable because it creates chatter, but negative chatter can destroy your business.
And for Canadian Tire, for pete's sake, you could have saved money by making the catalogue by-request-only. Which would have given you a pretty solid database to really pinpoint behaviours and characteristics of your audience. Maybe think next time.
Case in point (once again) is Canadian Tire. Earlier I wrote about their perfectly dreadful website and now they have canceled production and delivery of their catalogue, which forces people to go to their perfectly dreadful website.
The Canadian Tire catalogue is an icon to Canadian baby boomers. It had an extended shelf life in bathrooms all over the country. And now, no doubt thanks to a hip and happenin' marketing team, this icon is no more. Was there an actual review of customer behaviour?
I can accept there is a cost savings on making this decision. Printing is costly. Distribution perhaps even more so. But hiding this motivation under the environmental wonderment of saving trees is almost pathetic.
For decades, Canadian Tire customers have used the catalogue to stream-line their purchase behaviours. They would browse the catalogue at their leisure (making them more susceptible to the marketing messages) and discover items to buy they didn't even know they wanted. And there is nothing leisurely or even intuitive about the Canadian Tire website. So kiss those add-on sales good-bye.
Why did Canadian Tire stop listening? First they ended the great TV commercials with the lovingly annoying Canadian Tire couple, now they are eliminating the catalogue. Both of which were strong representations of the brand. There was a hew and cry, even in Marketing Magazine, about the end of the TV campaign. That campaign had garnered enough recognition that it had reached the often unattainable heights of being mocked by comedians. And the death of the catalogue has been mourned in Canadian Workshop magazine (which no doubt is the biggest demographic of Canadian Tire shoppers).
So now that the rant is finished, how does this pertain to your business?
Listening to your customers and knowing when something is working for them is paramount to success. Just because you have become bored with your marketing tactics doesn't mean your audience isn't reacting to them. And there is no point in trying to become something other than what your customers want you to be. If Canadian Tire is trying to appeal to a younger audience with these changes, well they have lost their minds. Visit a Canadian Tire and see how many young people are there, other than their ill-trained, ill-informed part-time staff. So not only are young people not their audience but they are alienating their solid baby boomer audience. And good heavens, baby boomers have most of the disposable income in this country!
So the lesson here:
1. Talk to your customers. Find out what they like and don't like. And use that information as a guide.
2. Don't let your personal feelings about being bored with your campaign be the deciding factor in whether to continue.
3. Understand that mocking by comedians is the highest compliment to the strategy there is. Comedians won't mock something unless it has had enough audience hits they are guaranteed 90% of their audience will know what they are talking about. I spoke with some folks from AIG Assurance the other day. We talked about the mocking of their insurance for seniors - they actually track how many times they are mocked and they love it! Kudos to them.
4. Don't cancel a marketing program that is working. You may think that the hew and cry is valuable because it creates chatter, but negative chatter can destroy your business.
And for Canadian Tire, for pete's sake, you could have saved money by making the catalogue by-request-only. Which would have given you a pretty solid database to really pinpoint behaviours and characteristics of your audience. Maybe think next time.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Accuracy & Clarity - who's doing who any favours
In the United States, Dell Computers is being taken to court by a class action suit for their constant disregard to being accurate and clear in their advertising as it pertains to financing and customer service availability.
Here in Canada, Dell Computers is a popular company to have complaints lodged against them with Advertising Standards Canada. And yet, in Canada, they continue to do business practically unscathed.
And The Brick. If there was ever a complete disregard for accuracy and clarity in advertising, The Brick is the granddaddy of nose-thumbing.
So if these big companies can get away with it, why should small business try to be ethical, clear and accurate in their advertising? Obviously, based on Dell and The Brick, there are business reasons to obfuscate terms and conditions, pricing and service promises - at least someone high up in these companies believes this to be true.
First, let's deal with Advertising Standards Canada. This organization is a not-for-profit group which is funded by advertisers. So basically, self-regulation. And Advertising Standards Canada has no power. They can make recommendations, but they can't really punish anyone. That is left up the Federal Ministry of Industry. And humorously enough, or maybe not so funny, is that Advertising Standards Canada relies on the consumer with the complaint to provide all advertising materials with respect to the complaint. If the advertiser doesn't co-operate and supply the suspected and accused advertising materials, then Advertising Standards Canada says they have no choice but to close the file.
Second, let's deal with the personality of many Canadians. Most people just don't find it worth their time to lodge a complaint and deal with the ensuing paperwork that complaining involves. We'd much rather just complain to our friends and family.
Of course, the key element that small business needs to pay attention to is that in the process of complaining to friends and family, the true punishment arises.
(Of course at this point The Brick has so many customers that love the special deals that the punishment doesn't affect them. But if you look at the deteriorating market share for Dell, it is finally hitting home.)
And what is this punishment, you may ask? Loss of business. Loss of credibility. Loss of any brand equity you may have had.
When one person is upset by a business' behaviour, they generally will tell at least 10 people. So at the barest bones of the matter, you have lost the trust of 11 people when one person is dissatisfied, either with your advertising, pricing or customer service.
While small businesses may, in the short term, benefit financially from questionable advertising practices, ultimately you will lose business and lose face in your community.
Be truthful. Don't get in two terrific items and then mark them down dramatically and run a sale ad for those two items. There is value in having loss-leaders, but be reasonable about what the demand will be and be prepared to meet it. If you promise great customer service, be prepared to deliver it.
Be accurate. If there are terms and conditions on a purchase price, say so in very clear, readable type. Nobody likes these kinds of surprises.
Be clear. Don't use mystery language that can be interpreted any number of ways. Tell it like it is. Your customers will appreciate it.
Make it a practice, nay, a policy to always be truthful, accurate and clear in all your dealings with your customers. While they may not verbally thank you, you won't have to guess if someone is out there telling 10 other people not do to business with you. Because, you know, those 10 other people are telling their friends and families too.
Here in Canada, Dell Computers is a popular company to have complaints lodged against them with Advertising Standards Canada. And yet, in Canada, they continue to do business practically unscathed.
And The Brick. If there was ever a complete disregard for accuracy and clarity in advertising, The Brick is the granddaddy of nose-thumbing.
So if these big companies can get away with it, why should small business try to be ethical, clear and accurate in their advertising? Obviously, based on Dell and The Brick, there are business reasons to obfuscate terms and conditions, pricing and service promises - at least someone high up in these companies believes this to be true.
First, let's deal with Advertising Standards Canada. This organization is a not-for-profit group which is funded by advertisers. So basically, self-regulation. And Advertising Standards Canada has no power. They can make recommendations, but they can't really punish anyone. That is left up the Federal Ministry of Industry. And humorously enough, or maybe not so funny, is that Advertising Standards Canada relies on the consumer with the complaint to provide all advertising materials with respect to the complaint. If the advertiser doesn't co-operate and supply the suspected and accused advertising materials, then Advertising Standards Canada says they have no choice but to close the file.
Second, let's deal with the personality of many Canadians. Most people just don't find it worth their time to lodge a complaint and deal with the ensuing paperwork that complaining involves. We'd much rather just complain to our friends and family.
Of course, the key element that small business needs to pay attention to is that in the process of complaining to friends and family, the true punishment arises.
(Of course at this point The Brick has so many customers that love the special deals that the punishment doesn't affect them. But if you look at the deteriorating market share for Dell, it is finally hitting home.)
And what is this punishment, you may ask? Loss of business. Loss of credibility. Loss of any brand equity you may have had.
When one person is upset by a business' behaviour, they generally will tell at least 10 people. So at the barest bones of the matter, you have lost the trust of 11 people when one person is dissatisfied, either with your advertising, pricing or customer service.
While small businesses may, in the short term, benefit financially from questionable advertising practices, ultimately you will lose business and lose face in your community.
Be truthful. Don't get in two terrific items and then mark them down dramatically and run a sale ad for those two items. There is value in having loss-leaders, but be reasonable about what the demand will be and be prepared to meet it. If you promise great customer service, be prepared to deliver it.
Be accurate. If there are terms and conditions on a purchase price, say so in very clear, readable type. Nobody likes these kinds of surprises.
Be clear. Don't use mystery language that can be interpreted any number of ways. Tell it like it is. Your customers will appreciate it.
Make it a practice, nay, a policy to always be truthful, accurate and clear in all your dealings with your customers. While they may not verbally thank you, you won't have to guess if someone is out there telling 10 other people not do to business with you. Because, you know, those 10 other people are telling their friends and families too.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
